Visa---Pick up at depot or courier?

[.......... 8]

I'm just interested to know which is quicker? And what do they mean depot?

[srvman 38]

Depot means it would be sent to your closest depot (or collection center) and they would contact you to let you know you can pick it up. No idea which is quicker though

[fcat 79]

DONT do the pre interview sign up, its $30 to have it delivered to your house.At your interview they give you a form to sign up for the courier and its only £8.99 delivered to your house.

Edited February 3, 2014 by fcat

[srvman 38]

Really? Wow. You would think that would have been brought up on here before now...

[fcat 79]

It was, the other week somewhere.

You can pay £8.99 before 12noon delivery, i think its £12.99 before 10am and £20 before 8am.

[Natonstan 129]

Ouch, wish I'd had known this, I paid my fee yesterday (My interview is on the 13th" and I paid the $30 for home delivery

[shell20 746]

Ouch, wish I'd had known this, I paid my fee yesterday (My interview is on the 13th" and I paid the $30 for home delivery

I saw this article before paying for my K1 luckily!!! I am going to pay the £8.99 at the embassy or if I have to pick up the passport I will. I don't honestly think this should be allowed by the courier firm. The K1 fee is inclusive of courier fee to the depot and I think charging $30 online is just a money making scheme. Some people panic as they have booked their flight (although technically they shouldn't before approval it says). I glad people are posting this and helping us to save money because the K1 isn't cheap in itself without the couriers trying to rip us off!!

[PalmTrees 34]

Thank you for this information! I was looking at the site about half an hour ago and thought $30 was pretty high.

I'm confused however. When on the site, it made me pick a drop-off location before going on to the next page. I chose Birmingham because its the closest but I don't want to drive all the way to Birmingham.

Am I right in assuming that when I get to the embassy they will give me the option to have home delivery and ignore the Birmingham instructions? And who would I speak to regarding this, is it the person that interviews you?

Thanks in advance

[Nich-Nick 3,353]

The embassy switched to schedule the courier online as well as paying the visa fee during last summer. That's the grand plan of how they want the K1 process to flow. Yes, they will have a backup plan where if you get there and weren't able to get through the computer process somebody will still take your money.

I personally don't see this as an alternative for everybody to jump on when the embassy says on their website--

Immigrant and K visa applicants are required to arrange for the return of their passport once they have received notification of their appointment date either from the National Visa Center or Immigrant Visa Unit and before they attend the Embassy for the interview.

And on a different page

Immigrant and K visa applicants are required to register with the Consular Section's Visa Information and Appointment Services'contractor for the return of their documents. The documents will be returned by courier at no extra cost to one of the courier's 31 depots in the United Kingdom. Home delivery is available at additional charge of $30.00 per applicant. Please visit https://usvisa-info.com for further information.

If they really wanted everybody to continue to pay on the day, why did they change the process? The courier didn't change the plan. It was the embassy who hired another contractor to streamline their work flow. Just a personal opinion, but why not follow what the embassy expects?

Edited February 7, 2014 by Nich-Nick

[otter~ 17]

So far I'm thinking of collecting it from the depot as there is one in my town, I don't know if it's faster or slower, it's probably about the same I reckon

Though, if I collect it from the depot, I don't have any photo IDs other than my passport (can't drive so no drivers license etc), which obviously I won't have xD Though it said I can take my birth certificate? So if I showed up at the depot with just my birth certificate they'd give me my passport back? ^^

[.......... 8]

So far I'm thinking of collecting it from the depot as there is one in my town, I don't know if it's faster or slower, it's probably about the same I reckon

Though, if I collect it from the depot, I don't have any photo IDs other than my passport (can't drive so no drivers license etc), which obviously I won't have xD Though it said I can take my birth certificate? So if I showed up at the depot with just my birth certificate they'd give me my passport back? ^^

What do they class as a depot?

[Nich-Nick 3,353]

What do they class as a depot?

I think it a regional sorting station warehouse kind of place where packages arrive for the whole region then get divided out to different delivery routes. So if you pay extra they put it on the truck going to your street. Otherwise it it held at the depot for you to go collect. Obviously it would arrive at the depot first, before getting sorted to a specific truck on the delivery route.

[srvman 38]

If it was me, I would pick up from depot. The amount of calls I get every week from people bitching about them missing their delivery, or getting lost in the post is unreal. HMPO actually had a say on why DX Secure is the contractor. Too many passports where getting lost (stolen) from Royal Mail. Watchdog did a story on it, basically forcing the Passport Office to use a different contractor.

[PBJ 60]

Sorry to resurrect an older thread but can anyone point me to details of the courier firm? Specifically i'm seeking a list of available depots for Visa collection. $30 is indeed a bit steep for home delivery and since I live in London i'm hoping there is a depot very close.

Thanks all,

D

[Kiwinyc 62]

Sorry to resurrect an older thread but can anyone point me to details of the courier firm? Specifically i'm seeking a list of available depots for Visa collection. $30 is indeed a bit steep for home delivery and since I live in London i'm hoping there is a depot very close.

Thanks all,

D

I think its called DX Secure and they have Depots in North and South London IIR. I picked up my passport from the North London Depot which is at Staples Corner, which was a 15 minute drive away for me. I was asked for photo ID when I picked up and showed my Drivers License. Sorry don't remember where their other Depot is located, but it tells you on the website when you go to pay for the Visa where the Depot locations are. It was much more convenient for me than having to wait at home all day for the courier to show up.